Planning a wedding involves choosing a fabulous dress, a breathtaking setting, a venue for your reception, appetizers, meals, cake, entertainment and wedding wine that will enhance all of the other elements. With all of the thought and planning that goes into a wedding, choosing wine for weddings is often overlooked and left to the caterers or hotel staff. Instead of leaving your wedding wine to chance, take a hands-on approach and select a wine that shows off your style and impresses your guests. If selecting a wine seems daunting, look to the experts and accept their help. Wine experts are as close as your local wine specialty shop and some may even be employed at your wedding reception site.

First, not all brides will have the luxury of choosing the perfect wine to serve at their wedding. Many caterers or banquet hall facilities limit wine choices or insist that you purchase all food and beverages through their service. Others have more generous policies and allow you to bring cases of wedding wines to serve at dinner as well as champagne for the toast. Check with your reception coordinator or caterer to find out what their exact policies are.

If you have been given the green light to bring in your own special wine, you will have many things to consider, including choosing a wine that pairs well with the menu, the time of day the wine will be served, the general age of the wedding guests, the number of guests and your budget. Once you have worked through the general issues, you will have to think about whether or not your guests are wine drinkers. Some younger crowds prefer beer to wine while groups of older relatives tend to prefer wine.

Is this a group of wine snobs who will judge you based on the wine you choose or are they more relaxed and appreciative of any well thought out gesture? In addition, you will need to decide if you will be serving red wine, white wine, or both.

All of these questions will lead you to the type of wine you will want to consider as well as the quantity to buy. If most of your wedding guests belong to “wine of the month” clubs and regularly go wine tasting, you will have more educated palates to please. On the other hand, if you and your friends are relatively new to the nuances of wine, a middle of the road selection will please all of you.

Once you have a general idea of how wedding wines will play out at your wedding reception, it is time to start researching. Plan a visit to your local wine specialty store and speak with one of their wine experts. Let him or her know what you have in mind as well as your menu selections and your budget. They will be happy to show you a variety of wines that meet your needs whether you want to impress discerning wine drinkers or simply provide your guests with a terrific wine at a fair price. Take notes during your discussions and ask about bulk discounts. Depending on the wine cellar you visit, you may be able to taste a few selections. If one particular vintage sounds appealing, buy a bottle and take it home. Now is not the time to buy your entire collection of wedding wines, you still have more research ahead.

If you live in a wine-producing region, consider serving a local wine. Not only will your selection reflect your homegrown roots, you will also be able to find a terrific wedding wine right in your own backyard. This research is by far the most fun. Plan a wine-tasting excursion at the local wineries with an emphasis on choosing the perfect wine for your wedding. You can go all-out and invite your bridesmaids and groomsmen for a pre-wedding get together and have a blast in your quest for wine or plan a romantic wine tasting getaway with your fiancé and choose your wedding wine at a slower pace. During your visits to the various wineries, discuss your wine needs and get advice. Once again, take notes and ask about volume discounts, should you choose a wine from their winery.

If you are holding your wedding reception at a world-class resort, the resort will have a wine sommelier on staff who is an expert in choosing wedding wines. Let the sommelier share his expertise with you. If you are concerned about your budget getting out of hand, let him know. Just as a sommelier may be apt to choose an exotic, pricey wine, he will also be knowledgeable about good wines with affordable price tags.

All of this research may lead you to the perfect wine for your wedding with a flavor that will please all of your guests at a price tag that fits your budget. If you are left with more questions than answers, you can rely on the basics. A good Chardonnay wine will please those who prefer white wines while a decent Merlot will satisfy those who crave red wines. Sauvignon Blanc and red Zinfandel are also safe choices.

Once you have decided on the perfect wines for your wedding, you will need to decide how much to buy. Each bottle of wine yields about four to six glasses. Err on the side of buying too much wine versus too little. You can always take the unopened bottles home. You should plan to provide at least a half bottle of wine per guest. If you have 100 guests, you will need about 50 bottles of wine.

In addition to choosing wine for weddings, you will also need to choose a champagne or sparkling wine for the traditional toast. Keep this in mind with your discussions with wine specialists, sommeliers and servers at the local winery. True champagne comes from the Champagne wine-producing region in France. If you prefer a domestic option, sparkling wines use the same process and produce excellent wines with all the bubbles you could possibly want. Because the toast is a special event, consider including a non-alcoholic version for your guests who do not drink alcohol. Sparkling cider and ginger ale are bubbly alternatives that kids and adults can enjoy.

Now that you have found the perfect wedding wines, communicate with the wait staff. Do not let them open all of the bottles at once. Ask them to open the bottles as needed so that you can either return the unopened bottles from the store where you purchased them (if allowed) or save them for later enjoyment.

Require that the wait staff ask guests if they would like a refill before automatically refilling their wine glasses. This will avoid wasting wine on those who do not actually want a bottomless glass of wine. During the champagne toast, ask the wait staff to fill champagne glasses halfway, allowing the bubbles to foam to the top and limiting the pours at the same time. This gives everyone a taste of champagne and limits waste. Those who want more can get more while those who prefer just a sip will not waste a full glass.

Choosing wedding wines is a time-consuming, yet tasty, wedding planning task that involves learning about wines, considering tastes and food pairings and choosing carefully. In addition, choosing a wine for weddings is a big expense so working with your servers is a key to limiting waste. By researching your choices, speaking with experts and communicating with the wait staff, you will find the perfect wedding wine.

Are You a Wine Whiz?

Whether you're willing to plunk down hundreds of dollars on the finest port or can only shell out pennies for Trader Joe's infamous Two-Buck Chuck, one thing's for sure: "Wine is not just a trend, it's a lifestyle," according to Ian Blackburn, founder and editor of learnaboutwine.com. Find out if your expertise could fill a Nebuchadnezzar or barely make a splash in a Dixie cup with this wine quiz.